The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) discusses remote provisioning of subscription for Machine-to-Machine equipment (M2ME) (see 3GPP TR 33.812 V9.0.0). According to TR 33.812, M2ME, which is a kind of a communication device, is provided with a temporary private identity called a Provisional Connectivity ID (PCID). The PCID follows the same format as an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI), and a network operator identified by the PCID is called a Registration Operator (RO). The M2ME accesses the RO using the PCID, and requests for subscription information called a Machine Communication Identity Module (MCIM). Upon receipt of such a request, the RO accesses another network operator called a Selected Home Operator (SHO), receives an MCIM issued by the SHO, and forwards the MCIM to the M2ME.
In this way, the M2ME is able to obtain the MCIM from the SHO via the RO using the PCID just one time, and thereafter, the M2ME is able to attach itself to a 3GPP network using the MCIM.
The mechanism of TR 33.812 is convenient for a user of a communication device such as a mobile phone in that it is possible for the user to obtain subscription information (i.e., an MCIM, which equates to a Universal Subscriber Identity Module (USIM) in this context) for the communication device via a network.
Meanwhile, a selection of a network operator as an SHO is important for a user of M2ME, because network operator billing systems and quality of service differ from one another. However, it is somewhat complicated and cumbersome for the user to identify the “best” network operator in terms of the balance between cost and quality. This is particularly the case when a single user owns and maintains a plurality of (typically, a large number of) M2MEs. One of the causes of such complexity is that some network operators offer a price discount to a subscriber if the subscriber makes subscription to the same network operator for a large number of communication devices such as M2ME. Accordingly, for a large number of communication devices, it will be quite complicated to achieve a good balance between the total cost and the overall quality while taking price discounts into account.
However, there is no mechanism in the art that facilitates the selection of a home operator (i.e., an SHO) for a large number of communication devices while taking both cost and quality into account.